

Welcome to January, 1981! Finally going month-by-month, Episode 4 includes the first ANALOG issue, Compute #8 and Creative Computing Vol 7 #1 and a review the game Caverns of Mars published first by APX then by Atari itself. And in my first interview, I talk with with Mike DesChenes, the co-founder of ANALOG Computing!

Introduction

I'm now a part of the Throwback Network!
Ten Pence Arcade
McCoyCast episode on Real Genius


Feedback

Intellivisionaries Ep. #13
Atari Bit Byter User Club
cc65 cross compiler
Brian Sturk's MAME cabinet




Interview with Mike DesChenes

Master Hobbies, Cherry Valley, MA
Newspaper scans of interviews with Lee Pappas and Mike DesChenes
OCR versions at The Digital ANALOG Project
ANALOG scans at archive.org
ANALOG scans at atarimania
ANALOG scans at atarimagazines.com


ANALOG 400/800 Magazine #1, Jan/Feb 1981

Cover drawn by Mike DesChenes' father

... For 58 more links, see the show notes




Ep. 4: Jan 1981: Caverns of Mars

A retrospective of the Atari 8-bit home computer systems, the magazines that covered them, and a somewhat chronological review of games as they arrived on the platform.

History

Society & Culture

Video Games

Games & Hobbies

Leisure


5200 coverage in magazines from January through March 1983. Plus a special bonus look at a NY Times article about Warner's stunning December 1982 earnings shortfall caused by Atari's massive financial loss.

1983

Q1 1983 First Quarter P.O.P. (Point Of Purchase) Support
Jan 1983 Video Games Vol 1, #4
Jan 1983 ANALOG Computing #9
Jan 1983 Joystik Magazine
Jan 1983 Electronic Games Vol 1, #11
Jan/Feb 1983 Atari Age Magazine Vol 1, #5
Feb 1983 Video Games Vol 1, #5
Feb 1983 Creative Computing Vol 9, #2
Feb 1983 Electronic Games
Mar 1983 ANALOG Computing #10
12/19/82 NY Times article “The Game Turns Serious at Atari”


Mar 1983 Video Games
Worm War 1 TV commercial


Mar/Apr 1983 Atari Age Magazine Vol 1, #6


Production Notes

Music: Stef Animal's Bandcamp page
Episode page: Episode 34
Twitter: @atari8bitgames





Ep. 34: 8-bit vs 5200 Part 2: Q1 1983


Coverage of a few magazines I missed last time. Live plays of two games, tips to speed up disk drive I/O, and articles on how automation has changed TV and film production.

Magazines

Atari 8-bit magazines


Softalk

Softalk Vol 3, #4
Assembly Lines book
Total Replay harddisk image
Axlon RAMDISK 320k
Passport auto-cracking tool



Nibble

Nibble Vol 3, #8
Nibble disk




Production Notes

Music: Stef Animal's Bandcamp page
Episode page: Episode 33
Twitter: @atari8bitgames




Ep. 33: Dec 1982: Magazines, Part 3


Coverage of Atari Connection, APX, Byte, C&VG;, Micro, Softside, Page 6 & Atari I/O for Dec 1982. Another Chris Crawford article on game design, a review of Steve Wozniak’s US Festival, and will Forth become the official language of the podcast?

Magazines

Atari 8-bit magazines


Atari Connection

Atari Connection Vol 2, #4
Mastering Rubik's Cube by Don Taylor
Josh Malone’s USB CX-85 numeric keypad mod



APX Catalog

APX Catalog Winter 1982



Byte

Byte Vol 7, #12
Rock, Paper, Scissors, Lizard, Spock
Byte Magazine Atari articles only by Kay Savetz
TRON soundtrack composer Wendy Carlos
Women in Electronic Music
Sisters with Transistors documentary film



Computer & Video Games

C&VG; Issue #14



Micro 6502/6809 Journal

Micro #55



SoftSide

Softside #36
Starting Forth online edition
Edsger W Dijkstra
Dijkstra’s rant on languages
History of Forth language
Forth cross compiler
History of Computing Podcast episode on Pascal



Page 6

Page #1
History of Page 6 magazine



Atari Input/Output

Atari Input/Output #1




Production Notes

Music: Stef Animal's Bandcamp page
Episode page: Episode 32
Twitter: @atari8bitgames




Ep. 32: Dec 1982: Magazines, Part 2


Coverage of Antic, Compute!, Creative Computing, Dec 1982. Chris Crawford on Legionnaire, first rumors of the IBM PCjr, and two articles predicting the future: Compute! does OK while Creative Computing gets a bunch of whammies. Also: Bullwinkle’s restaurant, sexism and mansplaining about whether educational software should ask kids their gender, and Bahrain doctors, video games & epilepsy.

Magazines

Atari 8-bit magazines


Antic

Antic Vol 1, #5
Stratos by Neil Larimer
ANTIC Podcast interview with Linda Schreiber
Legionnaire by Chris Crawford



Compute!

Compute #31
IBM PCjr
HP 85 Computer
Xanadu, the Home of the Future
Monrobot desk computer



Creative Computing

Creative Computing Vol 8, #12
CIA World Factbook on Bahrain




Production Notes

Music: Stef Animal's Bandcamp page
Episode page: Episode 31
Twitter: @atari8bitgames




Ep. 31: Dec 1982: Magazines, Part 1


In a special multi-part series comparing the 8-bit computers to the 5200 console, this first episode focuses on 1982. Scanning the regular magazines for mentions of the 5200, I also scour other magazines for both 8-bit and 5200 coverage. Only in this special series will you hear article summaries from these periodicals: Electronic Games, JoyStik, Video Games, Video Games Player and Atari Age Magazine.

Introduction

Atari 5200 Super Community Podcast
The Atari 5200 Podcast
Atari 3200 prototype
Gremlins: last official release for the 5200



Technical References

Business is Fun by Marty Goldberg and Curt Vendel
Jan 1984 ANALOG Computing #15 article Transporting programs to the 5200
Feb 1984 ANALOG Computing #16 update for 2-port 5200



Magazine Chronology

Jan 8, 1982: Atari Press Release Announcing the 5200
Winter 1981/1982 Electronic Games
Mar 1982 Electronic Games
Command Line Heroes podcast about Jerry Lawson


May 1982 Electronic Games
May/Jun 1982: Atari Age Magazine Vol 1, #1
Jun 1982 Electronic Games
Jul/Aug 1982: Atari Age Magazine Vol 1, #2
Aug 1982 Video Games Vol 1, #1
Billy Mitchell & Perfect Pac-Man
Historical overview of fake Pac-Man high scores & Billy Mitchell’s Fraud
Background research for the above


Sep 1982: Video Games Player
Sept 1982: Joystik Magazine
Sep/Oct 1982: Atari Age Magazine Vol 1, #3
Nov 1982 The Video Game Update Vol 1, #8
Nov 1982 Joystik Magazine
Nov 1982 Electronic Games
Nov/Dec 1982: Atari Age Magazine Vol 1, #4
Creative Computing Vol 8, #12
Dec 1982 Joystik Magazine
Dec 1982 Video Games Vol 1, #3
Dec 1982 Electronic Games
Arcadia 2001 overview


Late 1982 Atari P.O.P. (Point Of Purchase) and Advertising Support



Production Notes

Music: Stef Animal's Bandcamp page
Episode page: Episode 30
Twitter: @atari8bitgames




Ep. 4: Jan 1981: Caverns of Mars

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